Commercial companies now have a cargo-delivering presence in orbit around the Earth. As NASA breaks ground, becoming first on the Moon (and probably to Mars and perhaps an asteroid), commercial outfits follow tentatively with ideas of orbiting tourist spots and privately-funded research.

On 30 January at 7:30pm, Highland Road Park Observatory Center Supervisor Tom Northrop will present "Commercial Space Exploration". The talk is free admission and is intended for those fourteen and older.

Tom Northrop will give an updated version of his "Commercial Space Exploration" presentation tomorrow night, 7:30pm at the Highland Road Park Observatory. There is no admission fee; the talk is aimed at a general adult audience.

Tom Northrop will give an updated version of his "Commercial Space Exploration" presentation on Friday 1 October, 7:30pm at the Highland Road Park Observatory. There is no admission fee; the talk is aimed at the general adult population. I spoke to Tom earlier today and he was excited with the changes he has made; new graphics and pictures not seen by his previous audiences have been incorporated.

Tom Northrop will give yet another updated version of "Commercial Space Exploration" presentation on Friday 25 May, 7:30pm at the Highland Road Park Observatory. There is no admission fee; the talk is aimed at the general adult population. There has been a great deal of movement in this area of capitalism since the fall of 2016.

Announcements many have been waiting to hear will be made public tomorrow--the Commercial Crew names for the first Boeing CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX Dragon missions. NASA-TV will broadcast the announcements live at 10am CDT; they will be rebroadcast at 1pm CDT, 6pm CDT and 8pm CDT. The public can see "live shot" interviews of the picks on NASA-TV from 3:30pm to 5:30pm.